Rock
Page: 24
Neil Young is rolling out another gem from the vault. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame icon announced on Friday (Jan. 3) that one of his great “lost” albums, Oceanside Countryside, will be released on February 14 through Reprise Records.
“This analog original album was recorded in 1977 and unreleased. These songs are the original mixes done at the time of the recordings in the order I planned for the album,” Young said in a statement about the latest release in his Analog Original Series (AOS). The album was originally recorded from May-December 1977, just before the release of his 1978 folk/country album Comes a Time, which featured such beloved songs as the title track, “Lotta Love,” “Human Highway,” “Field of Opportunity” and “Four Strong Winds.”
“I sang the vocals and played the instruments on Oceanside in Florida at Triad studios and Malibu at Indigo studio,” Young aded. “I sang the vocals and recorded with my great band of friends, Ben Keith [steel guitar], Joe Osborn [bass], Karl T. Himmel [drums], and Rufus Thibodeaux [fiddle] at Crazy Mama’s in Nashville on Countryside. I hope you enjoy this treasure of an Analog Original recording, recorded by Tim Mulligan, as much as I do. Listening to it now, I think I should have put it out back then.”
Trending on Billboard
All the songs on Oceanside are performed solo by Young, with a group of friends joining him on Countryside, including Keith, Thibodeaux, Himmel and Osborne, with Tim Drummond on bass for “The Old Homestead,” which also features The Band’s Levon Helm on drums.
In addition to featuring many of the same musicians as Comes a Time, Oceanside Countryside also has a trio of songs (“Goin’ Back,” “Human Highway” and “Field of Opportunity”) that also appear on that album. The vinyl version of Oceanside will include tracks on the CD of the same name from Young’s Archives Vol. III release. Young noted that the tracklist for the upcoming album — which was recorded on tape — reflects how he originally planned to release the LP, which will be available in analog and on vinyl for the first time ever with the original mixes done at the time of the recording.
Though a number of the songs on Oceanside originally appeared on Archives Vol. III, the release noted that the versions are “not always the same.” Specifically, the versions of “Lost in Space,” “Captain Kennedy” and “The Old Homestead” on the analog original vinyl release date from the Hawks & Doves album from 1980. In addition, “Field of Opportunity” and “Dance Dance Dance” are the original versions that have backing vocals from Young instead of Nicolette Larson, whose vocals appeared on Archives Vol. III.
Check out the track listing for Oceanside Countryside below.
Side one: Oceanside
“Sail Away”
“Lost in Space”
“Captain Kennedy”
“Goin’ Back”
“Human Highway”
Side two: Countryside
“Field of Opportunity”
“Dance Dance Dance”
“The Old Homestead”
“It Might Have Been”
“Pocahontas”
Bruce Springsteen has been spending time hanging around the set for the upcoming biopic Deliver Me From Nowhere and so far he’s very impressed with the movie’s star, Jeremy Allen White. The actor best known for playing perpetually harried chef Carmy Berzatto on The Bear has been filming the movie that will tell the story behind the making of the Boss’ stark 1982 character-heavy album Nebraska.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
In a recent chat with SiriusXM E Street Radio’s Jim Rotolo, Springsteen, 75, talked about whether it’s been strange to be on set as he watches Allen portray a thirtysomething version of him. “A little bit at first, but you get over that pretty quick and Jeremy is such a terrific actor that you just fall right into it,” Springsteen said. “He’s got an interpretation of me that I think the fans will deeply recognize and he’s just done a great job, so I’ve had a lot of fun. I’ve had a lot of fun being on the set when I can get there.”
Trending on Billboard
More importantly, at a time when Timothée Chalamet is earning praise for his original vocals in the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, Rotolo wondered what The Boss thinks of White’s singing in the film. “He sings well. He sings very well,” Springsteen said. “You know, and Jeremy Strong [as Springsteen’s longtime manager Jon Landau] and Odessa Young [as then-girlfriend Faye], you know, it’s a tremendous cast of people. They cast the film beautifully, so it’s very exciting.”
Directed and written by Scott Cooper, the adaptation of Warren Zanes’ book of the same name, the movie has gotten full support from Springsteen. Last year, White told GQ that in addition to hours and hours of video study to nail Bruce’s signature raspy singing and speaking cadence he’s also been working with a vocal coach.
“I’ve got a really talented group of people helping me train vocally, musically, to get ready for this thing,” White told the magazine. “I’m also really lucky [that] Bruce is really supportive of the film, and so I’ve had some access to him and he’s just the greatest guy.” Before cameras started rolling, White was asked last June if he planned to do his own singing in the film, telling Variety, “we’re gonna try, we’re gonna try our best.”
In the same interview with Rotolo, Springsteen also confirmed a late 2024 press release teasing that this year will bring a new collection that will “look back at Springsteen’s storied recording career, featuring never-before-heard material.” When Rotolo asked about that release teasing unheard tunes, Springsteen simply confirmed, “there will be.” The singer also debuted a new song called “Girlfriend” in honor of late Replacement’s guitarist Slim Dunlap on the episode.
Listen to the interview below.
Neil Young has announced that he will be headlining Glastonbury Festival in June, just days after he said that he would withdraw from the festival and called it a “corporate turn-off.”
Earlier this week (Jan. 1), Young wrote on his website: “The Chrome Hearts and I were looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all time favorite outdoor gigs,” Young wrote in the brief update. “We were told that BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in. It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being.”
He continued, “We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be. Hope to see you at one of the other venues on the tour.”
Trending on Billboard
The Canadian rocker made a new statement on his website on Friday (Jan. 3) posting: “Due to an error in the information received, I had decided to not play the Glastonbury festival, which I always have loved. Happily, the festival is now back on our itinerary and we look forward to playing! Hope to see you there!”
The festival will take place at Worthy Farm, Somerset in England on June 25-29, and he will perform with his new band The Chrome Hearts. Young previously topped the bill in June 2009.
At the time of his withdrawal, Young did not expand on the role that the BBC had played in his decision to withdraw. The BBC has been a longtime partner of the festival, broadcasting performances across television, radio and online. In 2009, the BBC broadcast a number of Young’s songs on its channels. In recent years entire sets from headliners have been broadcast live; in 2024, Coldplay and Dua Lipa’s sets were streamed globally on the BBC website.
Festival boss Emily Eavis confirmed the news on her personal Instagram account: “What a start to the year! Neil Young is an artist who’s very close to our hearts at Glastonbury. He does things his own way and that’s why we love him. We can’t wait to welcome him back here to headline the Pyramid in June.”
Young is the first headliner confirmed for 2025’s edition. Other names such as The 1975, Olivia Rodrigo, Harry Styles, Sam Fender and more have all been rumoured to appear. Sir Rod Stewart will take on the traditional Legend’s Slot on the Sunday afternoon.
In November 2024, Young revealed plans for a European tour, which will feature mostly outdoor venues. He followed up with another message on Wednesday (Jan. 1), telling Neil Young Archives readers that “tour announcements for the summer are coming very soon.”
Nearly 300 songs have peaked at No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100, and despite not hitting No. 1 or even the top 10, many remain memorable years or even decades later. In the 1960s, Rat Packers Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra each extended their iconic legacies with notable No. 25 Hot 100 hits: “You’re […]
Neil Young has announced that he will not be performing at the 2025 Glastonbury Festival.
On Tuesday (Dec. 31), the legendary Canadian rocker, 79, shared a message with fans on Neil Young Archives explaining his decision to back out of the massive music event, which takes place annually at Worthy Farm in Somerset, England.
“The Chrome Hearts and I were looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all time favorite outdoor gigs,” Young wrote in the brief letter. “We were told that BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in. It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being.”
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
He continued, “We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be. Hope to see you at one of the other venues on the tour.”
Young did not specify what exactly Glastonbury and the BBC had requested that led to his withdrawal. The BBC has been a long-time broadcaster of the festival, streaming and airing portions of the event, including a global broadcast for the first time last year, according to Rolling Stone.
Trending on Billboard
Billboard has reached out to Glastonbury’s representatives for comment.
In November 2024, Glastonbury revealed that Rod Stewart would be the first artist announced for the 2025 festival. The legendary musician was the first confirmed act for the event, which is set to take place from June 27-29. Tickets for the festival have already sold out.
While Glastonbury has not yet revealed the headliners for 2025, several names have been speculated, including Olivia Rodrigo, Sam Fender, Harry Styles and Lady Gaga. Young had also been rumored to perform at the festival.
A timeline for the headliner announcements has not been confirmed, but the full lineup is typically revealed in the spring.
In late November 2024, Young revealed plans for a European tour, which will feature mostly outdoor venues. He followed up with another message on Wednesday (Jan. 1), telling Neil Young Archives readers that “tour announcements for the summer are coming very soon.”
Young last performed at Glastonbury in June 2009, with portions of the show broadcast on the BBC. The set included tracks like “The Needle and the Damage Done,” “Words,” “Rockin’ in the Free World” and a cover of The Beatles’ “A Day in the Life,” Rolling Stone reports.
Young’s new band, the Chrome Hearts, features Micah Nelson (guitar), Spooner Oldham (organ), Corey McCormick (bass) and Anthony LoGergo (drums). The group made its live debut in September 2024 at Farm Aid and recorded a new album last year, tentatively titled Talking to the Trees.
Elvis Presley’s The Classic Christmas Album leads Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart for the first time, rising two places to No. 1 on the Jan. 4, 2025-dated survey.
In the week ending Dec. 26, the set earned 40,000 equivalent album units, a jump of 59%, according to Luminate.
The Classic Christmas Album was released in 2012 and features 17 holiday-themed hits from Presley’s catalog, including “Blue Christmas” and “Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane).”
The collection, which previously reached a No. 2 best on Top Rock Albums over the 2020 holiday season, is Presley’s second No. 1 on the chart, which began in 2006, after Elvis Presley Forever led for a week in 2015. That album accompanied a “forever” postage stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service that year.
Concurrently, The Classic Christmas Album jumps 9-4 on Top Country Albums and 46-23 on the all-genre Billboard 200. It’s a new peak on both charts, usurping its prior Nos. 5 and 26 highs, respectively.
“Blue Christmas” was the album’s top performer in streaming last week. It ranks at No. 2 on Rock Steaming Songs with 27.1 million official U.S. streams (up 61%). “Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)” also appears on the tally, at No. 11 (8.1 million, up 43%). “Blue Christmas” was the set’s top radio track, with 9 million in audience (up 33%).
On the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, “Blue Christmas” rises to No. 21, a year after it reached a No. 18 best. The late Presley ties for the longest span of appearing on the chart – stretching across its entire existence, as he placed at No. 4 on the inaugural ranking (dated Aug. 4) with “Hard Headed Woman” and at No. 34 with “Don’t Ask Me Why” (both with the Jordanaires). Also with a 66-year and five-month span of hitting the Hot 100 from its first to its latest week, and likewise due to resurgent holiday hits: fellow late legends Chuck Berry, Nat King Cole, Perry Como and Dean Martin.
Hayley Williams may be gearing up for her first solo tour in 2025.
On Friday (Dec. 27), the Paramore frontwoman hinted at the possibility of solo dates in an Instagram Story celebrating her 36th birthday. In her note, Williams reflected on the tour she had to cancel in 2020 in support of her debut solo album, Petals for Armor, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’m going to try and finally play some shows next year that would’ve happened nearly 5 years ago now,” she wrote. “That is, if the world doesn’t f—ing stop before then. Here’s hoping.”
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Petals for Armor was released in March 2020, and Williams had planned a European and North American tour to support the album. However, the pandemic forced her to cancel those shows as venues around the world shut down.
Trending on Billboard
“Wow. I am going on tour. Myself. It’s not Paramore and truthfully, it’s just a little terrifying,” she wrote at the time. “But if I know anything, it’s that there’s no safer place (besides at home with my dog) than to be in a room, in front of the people who’ve grown up singing my lungs out for. There was a time I thought I wouldn’t tour Petals for Armor. What a joke. I must.”
During the pandemic, Williams shifted to virtual performances, including an NPR Tiny Desk concert filmed in Nashville, and released her surprise sophomore album, Flowers for Vases/Descansos, in 2021.
In 2023, after the lockdowns lifted, Paramore returned with their sixth studio album, This Is Why. The pop-punk band supported the release with a tour that included dates opening for Taylor Swift on her record-breaking Eras Tour.
In her celebratory post on Instagram, Williams also thanked fans for their well-wishes and shared a personal reflection.
“35 felt like tilling soil and throwing little seeds down. Waiting, waiting, waiting to see,” she wrote. “36 is exciting and a little scary, already. So much to hope for. I’m still in the dirt, ready for whatever might grow. Fruit?”
The former Morrison Hotel, made famous by The Doors and their 1970 album of the same name, was significantly damaged by a fire that erupted in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday (Dec. 26).
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
The four-story building, which has been vacant more than a decade, burned for nearly two hours before more than 100 firefighters brought the flames under control, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
The Morrison Hotel was featured on the cover of The Doors’ fifth album. Celebrated music photographer Henry Diltz made the image in 1969 and said years later that it took a little trickery to pull it off.
Trending on Billboard
A hotel clerk told the band they weren’t allowed to take photos inside, but when the clerk stepped away, the group ran into the lobby and Diltz quickly got the photo looking through the window, with legendary frontman Jim Morrison in the middle.
“It was a great old wooden building with many small rooms upstairs where transients and drinkers could sleep it off on a cot for $2.50 a night!” Diltz told The Associated Press on Friday. “I think the beautiful front window with “Morrison Hotel” in red letters was the best part of it! So did The Doors!”
The album was viewed as a comeback to their roots for The Doors, coming on the heels of Morrison’s on-stage arrest at a Miami concert that saw him convicted of indecent exposure and profanity.
Morrison and The Doors would release one final album, L.A. Woman, before he was found dead in a Paris bathtub on July 3, 1971.
Los Angeles firefighters who first arrived at the blaze on Thursday found heavy flames on the building’s top floor.
Several people who were in the building escaped without injuries, including three people rescued by firefighters from the third floor, according to the department. The building’s roof collapsed, leaving its structural integrity in doubt, the department said.
The building in recent years had been used as a training site for firefighters.
As she goes into the new year, Gwen Stefani is reflecting on one of her 2024 highlights: No Doubt‘s headline-making Coachella reunion.
“Performing at Coachella and feeling all that love for us after all this time was kind of overwhelming,” the “Hollaback Girl” singer reportedly told U.K. magazine HELLO!, noting that she still feels “incredibly lucky” for the experience months later.
“We hadn’t done anything together for so long, so to do that and be there for each other, with all of our families, meant so much to me,” Stefani continued. “It had been so long but it was as if we had never been apart.”
No Doubt took the stage for the first time since 2015 in April, appearing as special guests on the second night of the California festival. During the band’s set, Olivia Rodrigo joined the Voice coach to duet on “Bathwater,” and the rockers cycled through all of their biggest hits, including “Don’t Speak” and “Just a Girl.”
Trending on Billboard
Formed in 1986, No Doubt released six albums — including nine-week Billboard 200 chart-topper Tragic Kingdom — before disbanding in the mid 2010s. Stefani released her debut solo album, Love. Angel. Music. Baby., in 2004.
Two decades later, the vocalist is fresh off the release of her fifth studio album, Bouquet, which arrived in November. The LP features “Purple Irises,” a duet by Stefani and husband Blake Shelton, which the couple performed together at the 2024 ACM Awards in May.
A couple months later, the pair celebrated their three-year wedding anniversary. “It has always been you,” Stefani wrote on Instagram at the time, while the country crooner posted a selfie with his wife and gushed, “I love you!!!!!!!!!!”
While some fans might be on “Fascination Street” when it comes to their favorite musicians, The Cure frontman Robert Smith understands Chappell Roan‘s frustrations with what she has described as the sometimes “predatory behavior” she has experienced.
During a recent chat with Annie Mcmanus and Nick Grimshaw of BBC podcast Sidetracked, the Grammy-nominated musician shared his thoughts on the subject, noting that the relationship between musician and fans can be a complicated one nowadays. “I think what you’re doing as an artist, you want people to feel like they’re engaging with you. But it is a modern-world phenomenon that there’s a sense of entitlement that didn’t used to be there amongst fans,” he explained. “When we started out, it was kind of enough that we did what we did, and people didn’t really expect, as a consumer, I didn’t expect something more. It was enough to kind of see Alex Harvey or to see David Bowie. I didn’t expect to, like, hang out with them or get to know them, whereas now, it seems almost like that is part of the deal.”
The rocker — whose 14th studio album Songs of a Lost World debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 after its arrival on Nov. 1 — added that The Cure also experienced unwelcome fan behavior as the group grew in popularity. “We obviously have experienced quite a lot of obsessive fan behavior down the years, and it can feel quite threatening, honestly,” he shared. “If you have people sleeping outside your front door, it can get very weird. … But when it comes to your front door and people are there and they feel like somehow the cosmos has fated and you’re dealing with people who perhaps aren’t quite you know, right all the time. So you think like, ‘How do you respond to this?’ It’s impossible, really.”
Trending on Billboard
Smith added that it can be even tougher for artists like Chappell, who saw their fame skyrocket rather than experience a gradual growth. “It is more difficult to deal with things because you’ve not grounded at a lower level,” he shared of The Cure’s own, more manageable ride. “It took us years and years and years of touring, going around the world and doing stuff, until by the time we’d started to get properly famous, I kind of knew how to respond. I’d already developed that as part of like, who I was.”
“But being famous, if you’re not enjoying what you’re doing, I can’t imagine many worse ways of living,” the musician added. “‘Cause it’s horrible being gawked at all the time and prodded and poked and people expecting more of you all the time. It’s a very strange thing.”
Over the last few months, Roan — who was named Billboard‘s Top New Artist of 2024 and is in the running for 2025’s best new artist Grammy, among other gramophones — has been outspoken about the inappropriate behavior she’s faced from fans and photographers alike, and has in turn received support from musicians including Miley Cyrus, Noah Kahan and Jewel. “I’ve been in too many nonconsensual physical and social interactions and I just need to lay it out and remind you, women don’t owe you s–t,” she wrote in an August social media post. “I chose this career path because because I love music and art and honoring my inner child, I do not accept harassment of any kind because I chose this path, nor do I deserve it.”
And in October, the “Good Luck, Babe!” singer confronted a photographer on the red carpet who had been rude to her at a previous event. “You were so disrespectful to me at the Grammys,” she said in video captured of the moment. “I remember. You were so rude to me. And I deserve an apology for that … You need to apologize to me.”
Watch Robert Smith discuss toxic fan behavior on Sidetracked below: